Months After Holiday Break ^

Rose's POV

Currently, I am sitting with my friends at breakfast discussing our upcoming final exams. There is only one month and a half left of the school year, then we will have summer break. The holiday break was very fun and relaxing. Only year 4's were permitted to take their dragons, so I was unable to take Belvedere, Artemis or Apollo to my village. But, I told everyone about my three companions and my time here at the Academy. I drew up a rough sketch of my katana so that I could show Mr.Lucia and the Smith Triplets my new weapon.

When we got to Trinity Stone village, I felt like I was being tossed around from person to person, welcomed with hugs. I eventually caught up with everyone and spent a long time talking to Nicholas about my elements. He gave me some tips to be more in depth with my energy and I in turn assisted him in our village garden.

The Lucia's were ecstatic to see me. Along with Jason, they held a feast for me and the other village warriors in celebration of my 'success'. It was very thoughtful and such a fun time. I didn't realize how much I missed everyone until I saw them again. I went to the bakery during the holiday break to try and recreate the cream cheese raspberry filled biscuits. When I was successful, and the Wilson's tasted them, they immediately added it to their menu.

I finally introduced Roman to Gabby and Isa, they surprisingly got along really well. I missed everyone at the orphanage so much, so it was awesome to get to see them again. It was hard to leave after being there for about 2 weeks, but I am glad I got to catch up with everyone I love. Much like the choosing ceremony, Oceanus, Ampiere, Emil, Daisy, and Axel came to pick us up. I flew back to the Academy on Scar with Roman, Oliver, and the golden boys.

Now, I am waiting for Headmaster Jackson to speak of the announcement he mentioned yesterday.

"Alright students, listen up," Headmaster catches the attention of the entire school, even the staff are lined up along the cafeteria walls. "As everyone besides the year 1's know, there is an annual ball to take place in a weeks time." Whispers began flowing in and out of everyone's mouths. "Please remain silent for this is a very important message." Headmaster instructs, the whispers come to a halt.

"This gala will host six students per Academy for every Magii region. Five schools make up one region, and there are 10 Magii regions total. Two of the regions are in North America, one of which we belong to, three of the regions are in Europe, where the event will be hosted, two regions are in South America, two regions are in Asia, and one is in Africa. Every Headmaster per school will be in attendance with their six students. This ultimately means 350 people will attend this ball in hopes of raising money for their Academy." Headmaster Jackson gives us a brief background. He takes a deep breath before continuing.

"Out of the six students selected, one student will be selected for each element and for dragon riding. This sixth student is more likely to be the student who shows the most potential given that they are not a year 4. The decision of who we should bring is decided upon by the whole faculty. Now, without further adieu, here are the students who have been selected to attend the ball. For the element of water, Aiden Clark has been chosen." There is a huge round of applause as Aiden makes his way towards the stage.

"For the element of Air, Clay Machovec has been chosen." I continue clapping with a wide smile as I see Clay making his way next to Aiden.

"For the element of nature, Louis Bernard has been chosen." I see William stand up and whistle for his brother. Timotheé and his twin are clapping loudly. I see Louis stand next to Clay with a huge smile on his face.

"For the element of fire, Joel Clifford has been chosen." I clap loudly for my friend who has been selected out of all of the fire wielders.

"For dragon riding, Lucas Fraiser has been chosen." This doesn't surprise me, Lucas is the only other Level 1 dragon rider. The cheers pick up once again for Lucas.

"Lastly, the sixth student. The staff and I agreed that this student has shown the most potential we have seen in a while for someone of their age. So, for the first time ever, will year 1, Rose Wellington please make her way to the stage." Headmaster smiles. I sit in shock as I hear many gasps, followed by a thundering applause. Oliver nudges me to wake me of my trance. I begin walking, taking my place next to Lucas on the stage. I can't believe I was chosen to attend.

"Here are the six students to represent Stone Heart Academy at this year's ball." Headmaster motions to us. People begin giving us a standing ovation for being chosen. I notice a few downcast looks in the crowd, nevertheless, they are still applauding us.

"Everyone is excused to their classes." Headmaster dismisses us. I go to move, but Lucas holds me back. I give him a questioning glance. He shakes his head, silently telling me to stay. "Will you six please follow me?" Headmaster asks. We fall into step behind our superior.

"This is one of the most powerful group of students that this Academy has selected in a while. You are all excused from today's classes so that I can prepare you all for the gala. We will visit the seamstress shop so that we can design your attire. The suits five of you will wear will be in correspondence with your element. Lucas, your suit will be a basic black color because dragon riders do not have a domain color. Aiden, because you were chosen for water yet are a dual wielder, your suit itself will be royal blue, but your undershirt will be green. Rose, because you can wield elements as well as ride dragons, your dress will be gold. You will also have to wear rings to show which element(s) you can wield. When we get to the seamstress shop, give Mr.Hartsfield a detailed description of your ideal attire." Headmaster Jackson starts off.

"Because Sparrow Light Magic Wielding and Dragon Riding Academy is in Europe, we will leave the Academy two days prior to the actual event. This will allow us to travel and settle in at the host Academy. They have an extravagant ball room, as well as enough space, thus why the ball will be held there."

"Many wealthy and upstanding members of the magii community will be of attendance. These people may be successful blacksmiths, dragon saddle manufacturer's, Magii Community political members, and others. All 300 students will be talking to these investors throughout the night in hopes of one of them donating money to their school." He pauses before going into further detail.

"Let's say Louis talks to a powerful nature wielder, and this investor decides that he wants to 'sponsor' Louis. The investor will go to the stage and fill out a form stating why he wants to donate to our Academy because of Louis and how much money. These people are insanely rich, a big reason why they don't mind donating lots of money to separate Academies. As I said before, some of these possible investors are diligent blacksmiths. It is encouraged that if you want to speak to one, you bring one or two of your finest weapons to promote your Academy's blacksmith shop. Luckily for us, because of our prodigy year 1, many blacksmiths have ordered crafts from our Academy's shop. I know for a fact that many people are anxious to possibly meet 'Wellington'. This will give us a slight advantage with the blacksmiths." Headmaster Jackson directs towards me. I blush at the newfound attention.

"The highest a single student has ever raised for their Academy was $134,269. This student was Mr.Casey, the prodigy dual wielding master. He attended as a year 3 and 4, much like Lucas and Aiden. Aiden was chosen last year as the sixth student and Lucas was chosen last year as the dragon rider. Hopefully, your familiar faces will help bring in more money."

"I have a good feeling this year because only the Elder's have been informed of Rose's status. The Magii Community Ambassadors are not even aware that there is a female student at Stone Heart, let alone one that can wield all of the elements and ride dragons. It will come as a shock to everyone else at the gala, for this will be the first time ever a year 1 student and/or female has gone to this ball as a Magii Community member. The only other females that attend this ball are the cooks and chefs that prepare the meals. Sometimes, the wives of the Magii Community political members will attend, but it has only occurred a few times. There are a few members who attend who have never donated to a school. One of them is Elder Alistair Finley, he has not found anyone worthy enough to consider a donation to their Academy, even though he is extremely wealthy." He tells us. We arrive at the seamstress shop and individually meet with Mr.Hartsfield.

"What do you want your design to resemble?" He asks me when it is my turn. I don't know how to describe it, but I have the image in my head. I ask for the pencil and he gives it to me. I take the paper and begin sketching out the dress design. It takes me a few minutes, and it is not as detailed as I want it to be, but it will suffice. The seamstress shop owner observes my sketch. "Very well, would you like a darker design on the chest and a lighter one sewed into the dress?" He asks.

"That will be wonderful, thank you so much." I smile at him. He returns it and moves to the back room.

"Since we have the day off to ourselves, what do you want to do?" Louis asks our group.

"We can head to the commons and snack on some food." Clay suggests. I nod and tell them I will get my pretzels then meet with them. I have finished two of my containers so far, I am working on my third.

After a few minutes, I have my favorite snack and am almost near the common's room. It is a spacious area inside the Academy where friends can hang out and chill. When I get there, I see that the boys also grabbed their snacks. Joel has his black licorice, Aiden has his sour candies, Louis has his chocolates, Clay has his chips, and Lucas has his peppermints. We all gather around and settle down.

"What happens at the ball?" Louis asks Aiden and Lucas.

"It was a very cool experience. There was so much diversity displayed within the 300 students who were selected last year. The first thing they do is attach a wristband to your wrist." Lucas starts off.

"You only get the wristband if you are a year 1, 2, or 3." Aiden adds.

"Yes. After we got our wristbands, we had to find our seat in the dining room." Lucas continues.

"The thing is, you are not grouped with people from your Academy. The seats are completely randomized. Last year, I was seated next to one person who only spoke French." Aiden says, mine and Louis's eyes light up.

"After we eat, we are dismissed to talk to the higher members. There were only 67 members last year, so if you wanted to talk to one, you would have likely engaged in a conversation with 4 other students. Nobody even tries to talk to Elder Alistair Finley unless they want to be publicly humiliated. He, unlike the rest of the Elders, attends the ball every year. Last year, a dragon rider tried to converse with him and was harshly given a reality check." Lucas tells us.

"Oh yes! The dragon rider thought that he was powerful enough to chat with Elder Finley. Everyone saw his humiliation when Elder Finley never even opened his mouth to speak with him." Aiden comments.

"Duly noted." Joel mutters.

"You mentioned before how the student with the highest donations gets something, what did the student last year receive?" I ask.

"The student with the highest donations last year was a dual wielder of fire and nature. He was gifted a special cloak from Ambassador Declan. The Elders and Ambassadors are the first to know of the 'winner', so they talked to his Headmaster about what he may like. Usually, the student who is most powerful will have the highest amount of donations. After the student and their respective Academy is announced, the party continues on until we retire to our rooms." Aiden answers me. I nod to his words.

"Are we able to take our companions?" I ask Lucas.

"Yes, we fly on our dragons to the event. It takes about 17 hours to travel, so we will take breaks along the way. Usually, 3 students go with Headmaster, and the other students go with the dragon rider. Since you have your own dragon, I assume that you can take Belvedere. Headmaster will also probably let you take Artemis and Apollo as well, since he makes exceptions for you." He replies.

"What do you mean?" I ask in confusion.

"Surely you notice the special treatment." Lucas scoffs at me. I don't respond.

"She may be treated differently, but that is because her situation is different than everyone else's." Joel says calmly. Preach, I don't see any boobies on Lucas.

"I am not saying that to be rude. All I am mentioning is that you get away with things other students wouldn't. Headmaster allowed you to keep Belvedere on your second day as a fated companion, you have two of the highest paying jobs at the academy, you get individual training on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and you also have your own dorm room." Lucas states. Once again, no boobies ≠ own dorm.

"Cut it out dude." Louis tells Lucas.

"What? She is oblivious to her treatment, I was just pointing it out to her." He says with his arms up.

"Why?" I ask him.

"What do you mean?" Lucas asks.

"Why bring this to my attention?" I restate. I am aware of the differences between the average student and I, but I want to know why Lucas is bringing it up now. He doesn't answer me.

"Are you jealous?" Aiden asks him.

"What?! No!" Lucas defends.

"I think you are." Clay says.

"No, I am not." Lucas grits out.

"I agree with Clay. You are jealous of how everything comes to her naturally. Think about it. She is the only other Level 1. It took you up until this year to reach Level 1 whereas Rose is still a year 1. She has a job that pays extremely well and is solely based on her connection to magical creatures. Ampiere also favors Rose among other riders and spends lots of time with her. If you weren't jealous, you wouldn't have made that snide remark." Joel says.

Lucas says nothing, he just gets up and leaves the room. I watch his retreating figure as I continue eating my yogurt covered pretzels.

"He's stupid." Aiden snorts.

"It is easy to see how hard you work. You wouldn't be where you are now if you didn't have any motivation to be better." Louis tells me.

"You train with the dragons on Fridays, as well as succeed in your studies. He doesn't see how hard Mr.B pushes you in class. I remember he got onto you your second day of class during our weight training session. Especially Mr.Howard, he isn't in our combat class to see how hard our instructors push you." Joel says.

"Don't worry about Lucas. We all notice how differently you are treated, but we don't speak on it because frankly, I don't think anyone would want to be treated as you are." Clay tells me.

"You get yelled at by all of your elemental instructors everyday for the tiniest of reasons. You are forced to wear weights on your wrists and ankles during the school day. Miss Celeste is constantly questioning your decisions to push you to think outside the box, Miss Evelyn scolds you if you don't don't know a fact about a mythical creature, and Marcus & Trent are hardly able to teach you because you are more advanced than Lucas himself. You work in the mornings and afternoons, maintain your social life, and care for 3 dragon companions. Yes, you are treated differently, but I don't think anyone would be able to survive a week in your shoes." Louis admits.

"Lucas only sees you during your dragon training. So while you learn new tricks with Belvedere and the twins, he is still developing his bond with Ampiere. He doesn't witness how much effort you put into your training." Aiden adds. I just shrug.

"Lucas is entitled to his own opinions, I just wish that if he has something to say to me, he doesn't hold back. The only way for friendship to flourish is to remain completely honest with one another." I input. Aiden sighs.

"I find it amazing how level headed you can be sometimes." He says. I shrug again, if you remain calm, you are more likely to see the whole perspective.

"I guess, but you also have to think about Lucas's view. He has been working very hard for the past few years to be the best dragon rider he can be, but I am his equal with just a few months of training. He sees me getting away with pulling stunts he isn't able to yet achieve. Personally, I would support the person whole heartedly, but for him, it may be hard to come to the terms that sometimes you won't always remain on top. I like to understand both perspectives before I make my judgement. I wish he would have talked to me about his feelings, but he may still be understanding them himself." I tell them. Clay shakes his head in disbelief, as does Joel.

"If someone talked as much trash to me as people do to you, I would be throwing hands." Louis says casually.

"Same here." The other boys say in unison. I lightly chuckle at their antics.

"Anyway, I am excited to be able to go with you all. I know that I have only known all of you for less than a year, but everyone kind of feels like family." I smile.

"This year will definitely be better than the last." Aiden says.

"I can't wait to see everyone's reactions to our sixth chosen." Joel says. Clay laughs at this statement.

"I almost didn't believe it until your placement test. You earned my respect when you continued your extra attacks as you were badly injured. The dragon taming was just the icing on top." Louis states. At first, he was very quiet and soft spoken, but now that we have gotten to know each other better, he is more open to me. Louis is a lot like Clay in some ways.

"I remember that. I think everyone saw how truly capable you were after you fought through." Aiden says. A memory replays itself in my mind and I unconsciously laugh.

"What?" They question.

"I just remembered giving nicknames to you three before I learned them. Aiden, you were Two Colors, Joel, you were Blondie, and Clay, you were Dark and Brooding." I laugh. The four boys soon join in on my laughter.

"Really? Dark and Brooding?" Clay laughs aloud. I nod, almost tearing up. We continue joking around and spending our day off wisely. I am glad to be able to enjoy this free time with my friends, I just can't help but let my thoughts travel to the awaiting ball.

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